How to Make a Hoax

There's nothing quite like a good hoax. With the Internet's capabilities to spread information quickly and people's increasing gullibility for what they read online, it is no wonder that so many hoaxes are circulating through cyberspace. The key to remember when making an Internet hoax is to keep it harmless. Attaching malicious software or committing financial fraud will result in a federal investigation of your hoax and possible jail time for you.

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Your hoax could convince people that an extinct animal has been spotted.

Step

Pick a theme for your hoax. You'll want to pick something that could conceivably happen. Some examples could be the president getting sprayed by a skunk, a Hollywood figure doing something embarrassing or a sighting of an extinct animal.

Step

Create the story for your hoax. The story should read like a news piece giving exact details and answering the five "W" questions.

Step

Locate various digital photos and combine and edit the photos to form a picture for your story. Remember that a picture is worth a thousand words and will lend credibility to your hoax.

Step

Post your hoax on your personal blog site, Facebook page or anywhere else you can think of to spread the story.